Preheat
oven to 400F. Cut acorn squash in half and scoop out seeds and stringy part.
Brush the cut side with oil or butter, put the garlic and sage leaves inside
the scooped-out pocket and roast in the oven for 45 minutes or until the squash
is very soft, and starting to brown on top.

Allow
squash to cool. Remove the garlic and squeeze it onto the squash. Scoop out the
squash from the shell and place in a food processor or food mill, or into a
small pot.

If using the food processor: add the salt and pepper and process
until smooth. With the machine running, pour in the cream in a steady stream.
Pour the mixture into a pot and heat on medium low until piping hot but not
boiling. Serve over pasta or ravioli of your choice, topped with grated
parmesan cheese.

If using the food mill: crank the squash mixture through the
food mill and into a small pot. Warm the mixture over medium low heat and add
the salt, pepper and cream, stirring to incorporate the cream. Don’t let the
sauce boil once you have added the cream. Serve over pasta or ravioli of your
choice., topped with grated parmesan cheese.

If using the immersion blender: add salt and pepper and blend until
smooth, in the pot. Add the cream, and blend until velvety smooth. Warm the
sauce over medium low heat but don’t let the sauce boil once you have added the
cream. Serve over pasta or ravioli of your choice., topped with grated parmesan
cheese.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Cook
the broccoli and spinach a little less than the package calls for, and drain
very well. (Squeeze the spinach to get rid of as much water as you can.) If you
remember in time, save the water you drained from the veggies to make into soup
later. Add the rest of the ingredients, and stir well. Put it all in a shallow
baking dish and bake at 350 until it’s bubbly and starting to brown on top.

Combine
the turkey, celery, apples, walnuts, and raisins. In a small bowl, combine the
mayo, lemon juice and sweetener (or just use a Miracle Whip type dressing). Add
the mayo to the turkey and apples and mix well. If raisins have too many carbs
for you, just leave them out.

Rinse
the turkey breast and pat dry. Cut off any excess skin, but leave the skin
covering the breast. Rub onion soup mix all over the outside of the turkey and
under the skin. Place in a slow cooker. Cover, and cook on high for 1 hour,
then cook on low for 7 hours.

Rub
the turkey all over with the butter, including the cavity of the breast. Season
generously with salt and pepper. Scatter the vegetables on the bottom of a
roasting pan just large enough to hold the turkey (a 9x13 cake pan should work,
or maybe even a 9x9 cake pan). Set the meat breast-side up in the pan. Roast
for 2 to 2-1/2 hours (an instant read thermometer inserted into the thickest
part of the roast should register 160 degrees), then transfer to a cutting
board and tent loosely with foil for 30 minutes. This will allow the juices to
settle back into the meat and also let the turkey roast continue to cook until
it’s done, at 170 degrees.

To
make the gravy, pour any drippings into a small bowl. Skim off the fat. Add 3
tablespoons of the fat to the roasting pan, and save the rest for other uses.
(I scramble my eggs in it.) Place the roasting pan on a burner over medium high
heat** and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden
spoon. Whisk in the stock and the de-fatted drippings and continue to stir.
Remove the celery pieces, then puree the gravy in a blender or food processor.
Don’t forget to put a towel over the lid of the blender, and hold down tightly,
or you’re likely to have gravy all over the kitchen. There’s something about
blending hot liquids that tries to force the lid off.

**If
you’re using a Pyrex or Corning Ware type baking dish, don’t put it on the
burner! Instead, pour the vegetables and the defatted drippings and the 3
tablespoons of fat into a sauce pan. Heat the stock to boiling, and pour part
of it in the roasting pan, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom. Pour
the stock into the sauce pan, and repeat with the rest of the stock. Take out
the celery pieces, and puree the rest in a blender or food processor.

Heat
a large skillet over medium-high heat, and add the drippings or oil. When the
oil is hot, add the onions and mushrooms. It will look like way too much, but
it will cook down a lot. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms have
exuded their liquid and it has evaporated. (If you’ve never cooked with fresh
mushroom, they’re full of water, which cooks out. There will be a fair amount
of liquid in the pan, but then it will evaporate and the pan will be dry
again.) The mushrooms and onion should be browned and the mushrooms should have
shrunk a lot. Add some salt and pepper, and some parsley and or thyme if you
happen to have it. Serve as a side dish, or put in an omelet, or add some
cooked chicken or cooked pork for a full meal.

Preheat
oven to 350. Put vegetables and garlic in the bottom of an 8 or 9 inch baking
dish. Season with salt and pepper and Tabasco or cayenne. If you are using
dried parsley, add it now to the vegetables. Place chicken breasts on top of
the vegetables. Drizzle olive oil over chicken and vegetables and add more
salt. Bake for about 45 minutes, basting the chicken with the accumulating
juices. Try not to disturb the vegetables. Use a turkey baster to draw up the
juices if you have one. If not, tip the baking dish slightly so the juices run
down to the lower end, and scoop them up with a spoon. Sprinkle the dish with
the parsley before serving, if you are using fresh parsley.

Combine
garlic powder, salt, pepper and cumin and rub over the chicken. Place the
chicken in a 9” square baking dish and top with the salsa. Bake for about 30
minutes, then add the Cheddar cheese and bake another 10 minutes, or until the
cheese is melted and starts to brown. Let each person add his/her own sour
cream.

Cut
each chicken breast almost in half, leaving it attached at one side. You want
to make a big flat piece. It helps if you put one hand flat on top of the
chicken, and cut carefully between
your hand and the cutting board.

Place
one-fourth of the filling on half of each piece, then fold the other half over
to enclose it. Pinch the sides together, but don’t worry if they aren’t
completely closed. Put the chicken breasts in a baking dish.

Mix
the butter, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper, and rub the mixture over the
chicken. Refrigerate at least 15 minutes, until the butter hardens. Roast for
25 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes, at room temperature, before serving. Slice
the chicken breasts and serve with pan juices.

This is a delicious and simple way to prepare zucchini, that has been a big hit in workshops and pantry sample tables.

2 medium zucchini (or other
summer squash) shredded/grated

1 carrot shredded/grated

1-2 garlic cloves, chopped

1/2 cup cornmeal

1 cup flour

chives, chopped

salt, to your taste

2 large eggs (3 if on the
small side)

1/2 cup milk (or more if
needed)

3/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled

olive oil for cooking, as
needed

Toss the veggies, and flours
in a bowl. Mix the eggs and milk in a measuring cup or small bowl. Add this to
the rest o the ingredients a bit at a time until muffin batter consistency is
reached. Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet or griddle (if your
surface is a good non-stick, you can skip the oil). Drop the batter by the 1/4
cup, spread the batter out a bit if it is thick, and cook for a few minutes,
until golden and holds together when flipped. Flip and cook until the other
side is brown, and the pancake is cooked through.

Having
to peel and dice an oddly shaped, tough-skinned butternut squash for soup can
be difficult (and dangerous). It’s best to simply cut it in half and roast it
in the oven. The flavors will concentrate and
the roasted flesh is easily scooped out of the skin. The squash is then quickly
simmered with sautéed onion, sage, and tart apple, and blended with a bit of
cream. To add a fancy touch, garnish
with toasted pumpkin seed or fried sage leaves.

2.Line a baking sheet with
aluminum foil (optional). Place the squash pieces cut-side up on the baking sheet. Melt 1
tablespoon of the butter and brush all of it over the tops and insides of the
squash halves (alternatively, you can rub it on evenly with your fingers). Season
generously with salt and pepper. Roast until knife tender, about 50 minutes to
1 hour.

3.Meanwhile, peel, core,
and cut the apple into medium dice. Cut the onion into medium dice. Melt the
remaining tablespoon of butter in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium
heat. Add the apple, onion, and sage, season with salt and pepper, and cook,
stirring occasionally, until softened, about 7 minutes. Remove the pan from the
heat and set aside.

4.When the squash is ready,
set the baking sheet on a wire rack until the squash is cool enough to handle.
Using a large spoon, scoop the flesh into the saucepan with the sautéed apples
and onions; discard the skins.

5.Add the broth, water, and
measured salt and pepper, stir to combine, and bring to a boil over medium-high
heat. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, stirring occasionally and
breaking up any large pieces of squash, until the flavors meld, about 15
minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cream.

6.Use an immersion (or
stick) blender to puree the soup in the pot, until it is velvety smooth. If using
a blender, purée the soup in batches until smooth, removing the small cap (the
pour lid) from the blender lid and covering the space with a kitchen towel
(this allows steam to escape and prevents the blender lid from popping off).
Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Serve garnished with the
pumpkin seeds or fried sage leaves, if using.Adapted from chow.com